Bournemouth talisman fires warning at Leeds United ahead of Premier League Elland Road visit
The Cherries will be hoping to put an end to Leeds United's unbeaten home start to the season.
Bournemouth talisman Antoine Semenyo wants expectations to remain high as his side go looking for three points at Leeds United this weekend.
The Cherries got their first draw of the season at home to Newcastle United on Sunday, with neither side able to break the deadlock in a tightly-fought 0-0 stalemate. Three wins from the previous four games means Andoni Iraola’s side sit fourth as one of three teams on 10 points at this early juncture.
Their visit to Elland Road will likely be Leeds’ toughest home test so far this season, with Daniel Farke’s side beating Everton and also playing out a goalless draw against Newcastle. The Whites are also growing in confidence after a 3-1 win at Wolves saw them break their open-play goal duck.
If Bournemouth are to take anything from Elland Road, Semenyo will almost certainly be at the heart of things as their top-scorer and talisman. The 25-year-old already has three goals and two assists to his name, a tally he was unable to improve upon against Newcastle but hopes to do at Leeds.
“We’ve been riding high for a little bit,” Semenyo said after his side’s weekend draw. “I think the bar has been set quite high and it’s probably a fair result, but because of that maybe we’re disappointed. I think in the first-half we had opportunities, but it wasn’t to be and a point will have to do. Hopefully we can go to Leeds next week and take three.
“On the whole it’s been a good start to the season, definitely. We want to be humble and not get too big headed, we take it easy game by game. But we’re pleased with our start and the players are giving everything to keep it going and to continue it.”
A tough test on the cards for Leeds United
Leeds will have to be at their very best to get a result on Saturday, with Bournemouth one of the Premier League’s toughest sides to play against. Impressive head coach Iraola - who was heavily linked with a move to Elland Road after Jesse Marsch was sacked in 2023 - has brought an exciting and effective brand of high-pressing football to the south coast side.
Farke’s side will hope the advantage of a fervent Elland Road crowd can spur them on, having arguably been the better side against both Everton and Newcastle in previous home games. Saturday’s victory at Molineux also so the Whites ease concerns over their attacking threat with a clinical performance on the road.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Anton Stach and Noah Okafor all scored their first competitive goals for the club inside 14 first-half minutes as Leeds bounced back from Ladislav Krejčí‘s eighth-minute opener. Victory at Molineux pulled Farke’s side up to 12th in the table by the time all other results had played out, a promising start for the newly-promoted side.
Leeds will hope to welcome back Lucas Perri, Dan James and Willy Gnonto this weekend while there are also concerns over Jayden Bogle, who picked up a foot injury at Wolves. Farke will provide an update on the state of his squad later this week.